Hi everyone im a newbie :)

[kingvelox]

Thanks guys. that is why I am not ruling out adult dogs simply because they have already past the puppy phase. Also, adults I feel deserve the chance to have a loving home just as much as puppies:) Which "families" of basenjis would be recommended that has less destructive tendencies that are local in the southern california region?(please pm me) What type of exercises and training would be recommended?

As to what I value, its all stored in the garage:) However, my wife is keen on the furnishings within the house. That is why I would worry about leaving a puppy to roam freely. I would like to have the pillows intact and tassles complete lol. Perhaps its just a matter of setting an area of the house where the dog can run freely( dog proofing)

[jonny b.]

we built a very nice indoor and out door kennel for our 2 b's. they are very good when we are gone. we work full time but i come home at lunch everyday to walk them about a mile. I walk them every morning before work about a mile and after work another mile. we take at least a 2-4 mile walk in the evening depending on the weather. they are very good with our furniture. we put things up that we dont want chewed and we leave toys out for them to chew/play with. the only thing we really have to guard is the TRASH and our plates are never left alone on the table.
we find them to be the things you listed BUT also add:
very loyal
very loving.
great friend/companion
very entertaining
unique and challenging in a fun way

[tanza]

@kingvelox:

Thanks guys. that is why I am not ruling out adult dogs simply because they have already past the puppy phase. Also, adults I feel deserve the chance to have a loving home just as much as puppies:) Which "families" of basenjis would be recommended that has less destructive tendencies that are local in the southern california region?(please pm me) What type of exercises and training would be recommended?

As to what I value, its all stored in the garage:) However, my wife is keen on the furnishings within the house. That is why I would worry about leaving a puppy to roam freely. I would like to have the pillows intact and tassles complete lol. Perhaps its just a matter of setting an area of the house where the dog can run freely( dog proofing)

Adults are not past "being past" puppy stage… and in fact... I have found that many times that adults that are being place have more issues then puppies... different... but issues all the same.... is it not what families that would be less destructive... it depends on if the puppy is well socialized... and if a rescue adult... what is known about its prior home life.

I would never leave one to "roam" freely when you are not home... and even when you are... they need supervision... and that goes for any breed of dog... just not a Basenji.....

[kingvelox]

Yes. I agree Pat. All puppies or dogs can do so. Thats why we have not set to must have either a puppy or adult. I know whippets, another breed I am considering to be also destructive in puppyhood. In addition, I know that many have separation anxiety. Do basenjis have this as well?

[lvoss]

Basenjis can have separation anxiety and any dog can develop it. Patricia McConnell has a booklet on helping to prevent separation anxiety and work with dogs that already have it called "I'll Be Home Soon"

Tassels are probably going to be pretty irresistable to most dogs.

Establishing good habits and consistency in training when young goes a long way in having an easy to live with adult. In addition to doing your homework on breed and breeders, you will also want to make sure you are also finding resources like trainers and deciding what your rules are going to be so you can be consistent from the start.

[thunderbird8588]

Welcome to the forum, there is a wealth of information on here to help you make your decision.

[Quercus]

I was thinking the same thing as lvoss…tassels might be a compromising point...

[renaultf1]

@Quercus:

I was thinking the same thing as lvoss…tassels might be a compromising point...

LOL - Yeah, I KNOW in my house that tassels would be gone in 60 seconds - even with Ruby who is really well behaved.

[sharronhurlbut]

Well, my 2 b's won't touch anything sprayed with Bitter apple.
Once you get a dog, that would be my first suggestion.

Doing your homework before getting a dog is a great thing. We are happy to help.

[kingvelox]

Lol. So far a couple of things on growing check list..

1. Bitter apple
2. Tassel protector

[listeme]

Yeah, even my extremely well-behaved Curie would have chewed the tassels off anything. It's like OCD. "That dangly thing must be dealt with. Immediately. Now."

Shucks, we look at things almost in Opposite World these days. We see something with tassels or the like and look at each other as if to say, should we get that FOR the puppy? We probably have gone over to the dark side at this point.

[EskiLovr]

We had an oriental rug with tassels on it for the first 1 1/2 years of having a basenji. Only caught him messing with it once, corrected him, never had another problem.

Ours is weird though, and never (EVER) unsupervised.

I had more trouble with the vacuum cleaner and that rug than with the dog! Glad it's gone, got tired of it messing up my vacuum all the time.

[tanza]

Throw rugs are a favorite of all of mine…. dragging them around the house.... and until my first Basenjis were well into adult "hood", there was never any chance of hanging towels from the oven door.... they finally just about grew out of that by the time they were 9 or 10yrs old...ggg... Of course now with two puppies, no more towels on the oven door again!

[renaultf1]

@tanza:

Throw rugs are a favorite of all of mine…. dragging them around the house.... and until my first Basenjis were well into adult "hood", there was never any chance of hanging towels from the oven door.... they finally just about grew out of that by the time they were 9 or 10yrs old...ggg... Of course now with two puppies, no more towels on the oven door again!

OMG - you so speak the truth with the towels on the oven door. The sheer joy on Liyah's face when she sees one hanging there - priceless. :D:D She has trained us though and now I'd say 90% of the time I catch it before she does. The funny thing is, she is the only one of my 3 that will grab a towel. Once she has it though, Liyah and Brando play a big game of tug of war and keep away from mom :rolleyes:.

[thunderbird8588]

Yes towels have to be up high or behind closed doors in our house too
Our rug has several holes that she likes to pluck.

[listeme]

Haha, the oven door towels! Simon dashes around laughing with it flapping around like a flag. (If we forget and drape it there like we used to!) He's teaching us to remember

[kingvelox]

LOL. add towels to the check list. Wonder if there is a puppy proofing handbook out there? Is it recommended to have a B as a first dog?

[SenjiShowgirl]

yep, i went all 4 days, Zumi did even better on Monday.

Ok, so maybe Zumi is a tad weird, he doesn't destroy anything, doesn't ever bother with tassels, towels or rugs. even beaded collars are A-okay with him.
i think you saw his collar with the beads at the show. though i was told he was not a basenji because he didn't even look at them funny.

http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l75/BlauesHaschen/dog%20show%20pics/Mission%20Circuit/DogshowSaturday016-1.jpg

Zumi as a puppy only ever chewed one book, i told him off and that was that. Pillows are something to be revered for softness, he doesn't destroy them, he sleeps on them.

for dog-proofing, my best advise is to army-crawl through your house. that way you are getting the dog's-eye view of your house. if it looks like something a puppy might get a hold of/chew/destroy, then move it. you are basically baby-proofing your house. the trash can though must always be hidden, but while Zumi is pretty good about leaving it alone, if our puppy knocks it over all bets are off.

Basenjis are also:
your best friend
your enemy
a cuddle buddy
loyal (until they see a squirrel, or such things)
Loving
funny (they will always amuse you, even if you have to stop seeing Red first…)
good listener
neat/clean
cat-like
good teachers
hilarious with their odd antics
and oh, so much more.

[Terry]

Only if you're prepared to get at least one more Basenji and knowing that once you've survived the first 2 years, there's no other breed that compares!!

Terry

[listeme]

You come into the kitchen to see:

Do you:
a. Grab a broom and holler at the pup?
b. Laugh and post the pic on facebook to show how smart your pup is and how great his muscles are?

Psst, b is the right answer if you are thinking about a basenji puppy.